SE Rally Comes Up Short in OT at OBU

SHAWNEE, Okla. – Deundre Wheeler's four touchdown night not enough to lift Southeastern as it falls in overtime at Oklahoma Baptist 43-37 on Saturday night in Shawnee, Okla.
 
The loss drops the Savage Storm to 6-2 overall on the season and they will return home to host Arkansas-Monticello on Oct. 30 at Paul Laird Field.
 
"Too many penalties that cost us," said head coach Tyler Fenwick. "The turnovers that cost us. And we take it to overtime. I'm proud of the way our guys battled back. But that's a tough one."
 
"It's a tough conference," he continued "And every week is going to be a challenge. These guys are good, and the quarterback is freaking really good. He gets it out, he runs, he's so tough to defend. Hats off to him. But we'll keep fighting."
 
Saturday was the first overtime contest since the final game of the 2018 season when SE beat East Central 20-13 in one overtime and is the team's first OT loss since a 63-60 loss to Harding in four overtimes in 2015.
 
The Storm offense outgained OBU by nearly 100 yards, but suffered from a pair of turnovers, the first a misplayed kickoff return which the Bison recovered deep in SE territory and the second a lost fumble, also on the SE end of the field.
 
The offense finished the contest with 468 total yards, picking up 152 on the ground and adding 335 yards through the air.
 
Hatley turned in his fourth 300-yard passing game of the season, completing 38-of-50 for a season-high 335 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
 
Katrell Blakely hauled in 14 receptions for 101 yards to lead the receiving corps, while Duce Pittman snagged six for 47 yards and Hunter Hawthorne added five grabs for 56 yards.
 
Braxton Kincade finished with 57 yards on four catches and Marquis Gray picked up four receptions as well for 55 yards.
 
Jacob Reyes would haul in one of the teams passing scores and finish the night with two catches and five yards, while Wheeler pulled down a two-yard TD reception.
 
Wheeler was much busier on the ground with eight carries for 45 yards and three scores.
 
CJ Shavers put up 74 yards on 12 carries, while Ryan Taylor added 14 on five totes.
 
Defensively, the Storm held well beneath its offensive average in yardage with 378 yards of total offense, including 237 yards passing.
 
Scooter Baker led the way with seven tackles, while Micah Rogers, Josh Mulumba and Ja'Lon Freeman added six tckles each.
 
Freeman would lead the team with a pair of tackles for loss, while Mulumba and Cameron Tate each had one.
The Storm faced an uphill climb, trailing 37-24 with 9:24 to play after OBU capped a drive with a Preston Haire to Keilahn Harris 25-yard TD toss.
 
Southeastern would take its ensuing drive 75 yards on 10 plays, getting key conversions on a 16-yard Gray reception on third down and a 32 yard Kincade catch down to the OBU five yard line. That catch would set the stage for a five-yard Wheeler touchdown run, closing the gap to 37-30 with 4:58 to play.
 
The Bisons would move the ball 32 yards on their next drive before the SE defense would get a stop and force a punt, but the Storm would take over backed up on its one-yard line with 1:32 to play.
 
SE would get three-straight 10-yard pass pickups and two plays later would move across midfield on a Hawthorne 14-yard reception.
 
With time ticking down the Storm would move all the way down to the Bison 14-yardline after a Blakely 25-yard grab with two seconds to play.
 
Hatley would throw wide to Pittman on the next play, but a pass interference penalty would earn the Storm an untimed down at the two-yard line.
 
SE would take advantage as Hatley would roll right and throw to the back of the endzone, with Wheeler coming up with the deflected pass for the game-tying score, sending the game to OT.
 
Unfortunately, SE was unable to find the endzone on its first possession and a field goal try was off the mark, setting the stage for OBU who would get a six-yard Tyler Stuever rushing score to upset the Storm.
 
SE got on the board first as it burned off 7:52 off the first quarter clock before capping a 15-play, 70-yard drive with a two-yard TD toss from Hatley to Reyes. However, a missed PAT would leave the Storm lead at 6-0.
 
The Bison would answer with a Guillermo Garcia Rodriguez 25-yard field goal with 2:44 to play int he first quarter, capping a 10-play drive.
 
The subsequent Storm drive would end in a punt and OBU would take the next drive 75 yards on 14 plays before scoring to take the lead at 10-6.
 
The following kickoff was not fielded properly, and the Bison fell on it setting up a short 19-yard drive that took just five plays to give OBU a 17-6 lead with 7:18 to play in the second quarter.
 
Southeastern would answer on its next drive, mixing the run and the pass to march the ball 77 yards on 13 plays before Wheeler scored from a yard out with 1:00 to play in the half, and Hatley to Gray connection on the two-point conversion would close the gap to 17-14 which would hold to be the score at the half.
 
The Storm defense would halt the first Bison drive of the second half and proceed to march the ball 80 yards on 14 plays and run 7:38 off the clock with Wheeler capping the drive with an eight-yard run to take a 21-17 lead with 3:24 to go in the third quarter.
 
OBU would answer quickly however with a 48-yard Haire to Harris touchdown connection to retake the lead at 24-21, and after a Storm fumble deep in its own territory the Bison would tack on a 12-yard Haire to Harris TD to push its lead to 31-21 with 39 seconds to play in the third quarter.
 
SE would take its next drive into the fourth quarter and after pushing to the OBU 29-yard line, Trey Keatts would then connect on a career-long 46-yard field goal, closing the gap to 31-24 with 12:37 to play in the contest.